NBA Odds Comparison

Odds in NBA betting are a way of representing probabilities of outcomes in monetary terms. Odds enable a bettor to understand how much one stands to win for a given amount wagered.

Decimal Odds:

The decimal odds number represents the amount one wins for every $1 wagered. For decimal odds, the number represents the total payout, rather than the profit. In other words, your stake is already included in the decimal number (no need to add back your stake), which makes its total payout calculation easier.

Moneyline Odds:

Moneyline odds (aka “American” odds or “U.S.” odds) are popular in the United States. The odds for favorites are accompanied by a minus (-) sign and indicate the amount you need to stake to win $100. The odds for underdogs, on the other hand, are accompanied by a positive (+) sign and indicate the amount won for every $100 staked. This representation of odds takes a little getting used to but is widely popular in the United States.

Fractional Odds:

A fractional listing of 6/1 (six-to-one) odds would mean that you would win $6 for every $1 you wager, in addition to receiving your dollar back (i.e., the amount you wagered). Using odds to calculate probabilities for the NBA: Betting odds can be used to calculate the probability of an event given. It is a sensible option to add to a user’s staking plan if the user feels that the probability of the event is higher than the probability represented by the odds for that event.

Moneyline: A moneyline bet is the simplest and most straightforward wager in all of sports betting. It is a bet that has potentially two or three outcomes depending on the sport. When there are two players or teams listed on a moneyline bet, bettors are choosing one player or team to win.

Points Spread: A point spread is a bet on the margin of victory in a sporting event. The perceived stronger team (the favorite) must win by a certain number of points to win your bet. The worse team (the underdog) can lose by fewer than that same amount of points, or just win the game.

Total: An over/under in sports betting is a wager on the total number of points in a game. It’s also called “the total.” A bettor can wager on whether or not the combined points/goals/runs scored by both teams will go over or under a predetermined amount. You’re not trying to guess the exact amount.

For all the given types of odds described above, just calculate the amount you are staking and divide it with the overall potential payout to figure out the implied probability behind these odds.

In the old days of sports betting, odds were determined by a few authorities and the process that went into it wasn’t very methodical or justified. Today, in the age of online sportsbooks, betting odds are generated by large bookmakers. These companies have massive amounts of historical data on the sports and players they make odds for and use this data to generate odds for every outcome. The main objective of the bookmaker is to engineer odds to attract equal action on both sides of a betting line and encourage more bets to be placed. Rather than being an accurate prediction of what the outcome might be, odds are more of a representation of what bettors want to bet on. Understanding this aspect is crucial for any beginner bettors.